USCIS is denying I-140 National Interest Waivers at unprecedented rates, and we note that there is little regard for defense-adjacent prospective benefits for the United States. EB-1As are not doing too well either. See below chart for average approval rates – big drop in the second half of 2025. This matches AILA news on NIWs and EB-1As from March 12, 2025. Yet O-1s which also dropped approval rates, are doing fairly well compared to the other two “Preferred” Categories, possibly indicating that the temporariness of employment with an employment sponsorship seems to boost the chances of approval.
